Forever In Between
by asianpearl
Summary: RyuuXMegXKyuu. The love triangle everyone well, almost wanted to see.
1. Chapter 1

**Forever In Between**

Chapter 1 : Getting to know you

He continued to wander the streets of Tokyo aimlessly. The answers to the latest mystery still eluding him. Often, the crisp evening air would put everything in perspective for the young detective but not today. Today he felt like his mind was running slower than usual. This was extremely uncharacteristic of him especially since he had been named a prodigy by almost every one of his teachers. He sighed and leaned against a tree. Must be a bad day.

He shut his eyes and started to breathe rhythmically, hoping to clear his mind. He unrolled the tight knot of muscles in his shoulder and slumped against the bark of the tree, using one foot as leverage so that he would not fall. The sounds and smells of the impending dusk penetrated his senses as he quieted his mind. He could hear a dog barking not too far away, smell the rich odors wafting from a nearby spice shop and ,being carried by the wind, the silvery tinkling of laughter.

His eyes snapped open immediately as he looked at the direction the laughter came from. He knew that voice. Like a predator on the hunt, he left his tree and made his way towards the direction of the voice. This part of town was already devoid of people. A sight uncommon in this busy metropolitan city. But today, he was thankful for that fact.

He saw her. She sat on the park bench facing the lakeside with her back to him. Beside her was a man in a suit. His sleeves were rolled up and one arm was casually draped across the back of her seat. To avoid her form noticing him, he ducked behind a large signboard. As far as he knew, she was involved with some other guy at the moment. Kuro.. or something like that. So, why then was she sitting on a park bench with the junior detective from the police department?

"Oh, Neko-chan, you're always so funny,"

"And then.. the chief was all like.. _what drink?_ When the bottles were practically stacked in front of us,"

"And the two of you got away with it?"

"Ah.. you know us Megu-chan," he was trying to sound impressive "Us being _detectives_ and all.."

She let out a laugh which was meant to be coy but actually she was bordering on the verge of sarcasm.

"Speaking of… that case with the mangled corpse really did make headlines didn't it,"

"Yea.. its all over the news that the killer might strike again. But between you and me, Megu-chan, me and the chief have a pretty good idea who the culprit is,"

Which was police speak for '_We don't have a clue' _ Ryuu thought dryly.

"Really?" she said in a tone which oozed admiration. Ryuu could just imagine those eyes of hers widening in made-believe awe.

"You know.. I could really use some help with this as well.." she drifted off. He heard a slight shuffling sound. She had probably inched closer to him on the bench.

"Right.. right.. I forgot DDS was on the case too,"

"So.. Neko-chan, do you think you could.. uh.."

Her next words were cut off and Ryuu twisted around in time to see her whispering something into the junior's ear. His eyes widened at this newfound discovery. Suddenly everything clicked into place. She was using him. The poor guy. For the past three years, she had always been able to magically produce crime files, confiscated items and other normally inaccessible items almost too easily. He now knew how.

Half of him swelled in admiration and pride for his best friend. The other half? He spared a moment to pity all the poor men who had fallen for her charms, Sincerely hoping that he, at least, would not be as gullible.

"No way.. The chief would kill me. I just cant do this Megu.. You know I adore you right? But if the chief asks me about another missing file.. I'm dead!"

"Oh.. That's too bad then.. you know.. coz' I jus bought that dress you liked.. and well I thought that we could.. you know.."

_What? What?_ Ryuu himself was itching to know.

"Oh! That file!" the junior detective's voice had suddenly gotten all jumpy and excited.

"Its right here in fact!" he sounded like a kid on Christmas day. There was some shuffling of paper.

"Just , please can you get it back to me by tomorrow?"

"Sure," said Meg brightly. "I'll give the file back to you when we do lunch tomorrow."

"L-Lunch?" said junior

"Yea.. that's what I was going to say. I'm going to wear that new dress I bought to lunch tomorrow"

"But..but.. I thought.."

"You thought?" asked Meg

What _had _the junior detective been thinking? If it was anything like what Ryuu had presumed, he detective had done a poor job at concealing his excitement. Ryuu almost wanted to laugh at that point. He had to admit. For a moment there, he had actually thought Meg might have been up to.. er.. something improper. He had to had it to that girl. She had made the poor guy fall hook, line and sinker.

The pair on the bench had parted ways. Meg had only just passed the signboard when she stopped and said.

"How long have you been standing there?"

"Long enough,"

The sun had disappeared beyond the horizon and he had to jog slightly to keep up with her brisk pace. The girl could move unnaturally fast on high heels. She didn't look at him when he walked abreast with her. She didn't even speak. He was intrigued by the sudden change of mood. Was she angry at him for eavesdropping on her?

"Since when have you-"

"Promise you wont tell anyone?" she cut him off and looked at him with a serious face. The two of them had come to a halt.

"Come on.. if you're worried that they-"

"Promise?" she insisted

"Alright," he still had no idea what she was so worked up about.

She still gave him a suspicious look. He heaved an exaggerated sigh for her benefit.

"I, Amakusa Ryuu, swear as the best friend if Minami Megumi, swear that I will not blurt out what I have just seen and heard to my other best friends,"

"Or anyone else," she added promptly

"Or anyone else." He finished.

Her face finally relaxed as she linked her hand through his. The contact might have been awkward a few years ago but it was common now. The five of them shared an unbreakable bond that no one could question.

"Are you going to tell me what you're so worked up about?" he asked as they continued their journey.

"I'm scared the rest of you guys will think I'm some sort of scarlet woman,"

"Scarlet woman?" he asked, bewildered.

"I don't even know if it's called that. I guess I'm just scared that you guys wont approve of the way I get my information. I mean I know I'm not smart, or strong or-"

"I don't have a problem with it," he figured he'd try to make her feel better before she got too upset. "In fact, I'm beginning to like your methods,"

She had burst out laughing.

"Methods? What am I? An evil witch?"

"Well, considering the fact that you've got super memory, deceivingly charming looks, and of course four dashing knights in shining armor to protect you.."

"Full of yourself aren't you?" she sniggered again. "I think I'd prefer the quiet you better,"

It was all light banter of course. They had been doing that a lot lately. In between missions, after school hours, and on class outings. He had grown accustomed to her. She was a constant presence to him now. Something -though he didn't admit it vocally- he would feel incomplete without.

The DDS building came into view. They'd have to stop fooling around now. Of course, Kinta would take a jibe at the two of them appearing together. But they were used to it. Kyuu would rush to meet them and ask repeatedly where the two of them had been. Kazuma would just shake his head at his friend's antics and continue to type away at his computer. It had become routine. The modus operandi of Class Q. Constantly supporting each other. Always being there for their friends. And never having a single doubt in each other's abilities.

Ryuu sometimes wished that they could remain as 'class Q' forever. But Dan-sensei's health was deteriorating. He had to choose a successor eventually. And Kinta was going to take over his father's position on his 21st birthday. Even Ryuu had been surprised to find out that Kinta was chosen despite his young age.

Did all good things have to come to an end? Would they really be friends forever?

**Author's Note : **This story takes place three years after the season finale of DDS. Meaning Kyuu, Megumi, and Ryuu are 17 each. Kinta is 20 and Kazuma is 14. Some bits mentioned above come from the live action drama adaptation of DDS. So, I apologize beforehand if I sound confusing.. heh.. There will be some KyuuXMegXRyuu in the next chapter though. So please be patient!

Reviews and flames excepted.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2 : Surprise surprise

Disclaimer : Standard disclaimers.

It was quiet. Far too quiet. Everyone had gathered in Class Q's classroom for Nanami sensei's birthday bash. So, quiet should be nearly impossible right? Of course, Nanami sensei did not want to start the party without _everyone _there. And right now, Kyuu and Kazuma were nowhere to be seen. In fact, they had been vanishing over long periods of time ever since the last case was solved.

"Jeez! Do these people have no sense of time?" whined Saborumaru

"Quit complaining! Its not like you have anything important to do!" snapped Yukihira.

Naturally, the members of Class A were also present. So were Dan-sensei, Katagiri-sensei and Hougou-sensei.

From her corner of the room, the pink haired girl tried her best to contact her missing friend on her mobile phone. However, it appeared that the boy was not answering. Kinta and Ryuu stood beside her. They were getting worried about their two best friends.

Suddenly, a pair of running footsteps could be heard from the hallway. Nanami perked up.

"Aha! That must be them!"

The door banged open, revealing a panting Kyuu and Kazuma. They each looked like they had run a marathon. Kazuma, as always, clutched his laptop to his chest.

"Where on earth have the two of you been?!" Katagiri sensei half scolded. "The party was supposed to start half an hour ago!"

"Now, now," came the calm voice of Dan-sensei "I trust these boys have a very good explanation for making us wait this long. And I'm sure you have the attention of everyone in the room in order to explain why."

The students sweatdropped. Their headmaster sure had ways of intimidating you.

Kyuu looked apprehensive.

"C-Can't it wait Dan-sensei?" I mean, we're here to enjoy a party right?"

Kyuu's statement was met with silence. The boy began to laugh nervously and was backing out of the spotlight when suddenly,

"DO NOT SHOW DISRESPECT TO YOUR HEDMASTER!!" Hongou sensei yelled.

"YOU WILL EXPLAIN NOW!"

Kyuu and Kazuma must've jumped a foot in shock. With a slight nudge from Kyuu, Kazuma set up his laptop and then projected an image onto the screen at the front of the classroom. Meg's eyes widened when she saw the picture on the screen.

"It began like this," explained Kyuu. "A few days ago, I heard a rumor circulating. The nature of this rumor was very disturbing and I decided to investigate."

"And the rumor is related to this man?" asked Katagiri-sensei

"Yes," said Kyuu while pointing to the screen.

"His name is Kadaguchi Kurogane. 19 years old. A student at Tokyo Uni. And quite recently, the boyfriend of Minami Megumi,"

All heads swiveled to the pink haired girl. She was mortified. The instant Kyuu started talking again, everyone turned back to look at him. Like some kind of bizarre tennis relay.

"I enlisted the help of some of my friends and I have been researching this rumor for the past one week,"

He was in detective mode now. He paced the length of the classroom while mumbling.

"It was hard to crack this case. The culprit moved almost flawlessly and almost never left any hints behind. But,"

He paused for dramatic effect.

"There can only be one answer!"

Everyone in the class was hanging on his words. Even the students of class A looked genuinely interested in what Kyuu had to say.

"There were three hints! A. The modus operandi of the culprit. B. The text messages received by the victims and C. the bracelet on Meg's hand,"

All heads swiveled towards her again. The girl felt like fleeing the room. Indeed, a thin, silver, charm bracelet hung around her wrist.

"Let me explain. The culprit would normally wait at shops where girls like Meg would normally go to. Once he has spotted a suitable candidate, he would use several techniques to woo the girl and convince her into going out with him. Observe.,"

With a few clicks of the mouse, Kazuma had now produced a picture of the suspect walking and having meals with several unidentified females.

"I assure you that none of these photos are edited or superimposed in any way. In fact, these photos were all taken in this week alone,"

Meg gasped when she saw the pictures. Among them, she picked out a picture of herself and Kuro, hand in hand as they walked outside of the mall.

"You were spying on us?" she asked Kyuu, clearly outraged.

He gave her a pained expression and asked her to give him a chance to continue. With a slight huff, she sat back down in her chair.

"My second clue is the text messages received by the victim. In each of them, the culprit would use pet names like babyface or sugarmuffin. Clearly, he did not want to get the names of the girls mixed up and to avoid being caught."

"The third clue is the bracelet. We have confirmed from the jeweler that Kadoguchi Kurogane has in fact, been purchasing many cheap bracelets as gifts for his dates,"

Meg looked disgusted. She wrenched the silver chain off her wrist and flung it to the floor.

"There is no doubt. With all the evidence, we can only conclude that Kuro is guilty of being a serial dater!"

"How dare you,"

All heads turned again to the soft voice.

"How dare you do something like this?" she looked straight at Kyuu.

"So I made a bad choice. So what? Who are you to go all undercover like this and expose him for everyone to see?"

She was nearly hysterical.

"Who are you to humiliate me in front of everyone by publicizing the knowledge that I'm obviously gullible enough to be cheated on?"

Kyuu looked at lost for words. He opened and closed his mouth like a goldfish for a few seconds before blurting out.

"But it wasn't just me! I mean, Kazuma got the messages from your phone and Kinta had to get the information from the jeweler,"

The outcries from his two friends did nothing to stall him.

"And Ryuu was there too. He was the one who told me about Kuro in the first place! I mean he even suggested we do the stake out!"

She glared at Ryuu who was obviously trying to get Kyuu to shut up by making threatening hand gestures. His plan failed abysmally and he backed off slightly as daggers began to fly out of Meg's eyes.

"I can't believe this," she looked down, her long bangs obscuring her eyes. From what Ryuu could see, her knuckles had turned white as a result of her fisting her hands too hard.

"Well, well," said Nanami sensei cheerfully. He was trying to lighten the mood.

"Er.. who wants cake?"

"But Nanami sensei helped too. He gave us the tiny surveillance cameras we wanted," said Kyuu, oblivious to the chaos he was creating.

"Even Dan-sensei gave me the thumbs up to go on with my investigation when I told him about it,"

Meg backed up into the center of the room. Suddenly, she felt alienated from everyone.

"Is there even a single person in this room who didn't know about this?"

It was obvious from the shameful looks the men had on their faces as they tried to avoid her intense gaze. There was a peculiar look on Meg's face after that. It looked like she wanted to cry and at the same time wanted to laugh at the absurdity of the situation.

Instead, she bowed to Dan-sensei and excused herself, rather hurriedly, from the room.

When the door banged shut again, Yukihira let out a frustrated groan and marched off after Meg. On the way to the door, Kyuu swore he could hear her mumbling things like _"tactless, idiotic men!"._

The door banged for a second time. Then, to everyone's surprise, Katagiri sensei shot a cold look at Nanami sensei and walked, slightly calmer than Yukihira, out of the room.

The door banged for the third time. It was quiet again. Far too quiet. Then suddenly, Saborumaru piped up

"Anyone for bad date stories?"

The entire male section of DDS shot him a look that plainly said

'Shut up or die'

………………………………………………………………………………………………

Meg sniffed as she stared out of the window at the gardens below. She was never the type who cried. But today had been an emotional roller coaster ride. Never, in her wildest dreams, had she imagined that everyone would gang up on her boyfriend.

_Ex-boyfriend_ she reminded herself. She had called it off with Kuro the instant she left the classroom.

"Lets face it Meg, all men are a pain in the ass" said Yukihira from a chair behind her.

"They charm you the instant they take a fancy to you. But do they ever commit? No.. they're about as afraid about that as they are with ghosts," she mumbled darkly.

Meg turned to her new found confidant and snickered.

"You sound like you have some experience yourself."

The girl in question briefly raised her eyes from examining her perfect manicure.

"Yup. Remember when I was dating this guy, Tom, a few months ago?"

"Uhuh.." replied Meg, suddenly eager for gossip.

"He was a total chicken! One day he's asking me to go steady, the next thing I know, he's telling me we should keep it slow!"

"And what did you do?"

"Duh.. I dumped the weasel of course."

She sighed as she held her nails up to the light.

"He didn't deserve me." She said lightly.

"What she's trying to say is that you should be more careful with men, Meg" said Katagiri-sensei from the other chair.

"Speak for yourself teach' " said Yukihira. She crossed her legs and looked at the elder lady keenly.

"What's this I've heard about you getting engaged to Nanami-sensei?"

"Eh? Really?" said Meg, her eyes widening with delight.

"Oh," said Katagiri sensei while blushing furiously. "He asked me yesterday. I don't know how on earth you could have-"

"Word travels fast. Same goes for you chump," she said while pointing at Meg.

"You need to shape up. You need to look those guys in the eyes and tell them you're a big girl now. You don't need to be watched over 24/7,"

Meg dried her eyes with her sleeves and smiled. Yup, the old bubbly Meg was back.

Suddenly, there was a soft knocking on the door. Before Meg could get up to answer the door, Yukihira stopped her and yelled.

"Which one of those blockheaded males are you and what do you want?"

Meg's eyes widened as she whispered frantically.

"It could be Dan-sensei!"

"Relax. I've been around my dear uncle long enough to know he can't move that squeaky wheelchair of his without making some sort of noise. And besides, Hongou sensei would have broken the door open by now don't cha think?"

"Its Ryuu. Er.. I've come to apologise.."

Unbeknownst to Meg, Yuki's lips turned up in a small grin. However, Katagiri sensei caught the small twitch and instantly knew her student had something planned.

"Oh well, I guess we do have to let you go my dear Meg," said Yuki.

She and Katagiri sensei got up to exit the room. Her hand rested on the door handle but before she could open it, she turned to Meg and winked.

_Tell me everything _she mouthed.

The two women shuffled past the blue haired teenager and walked down the hallway. After they heard the door close, Katagiri sensei laughed to herself and said.

"I wonder if that girl knows exactly how lucky she is"

Yuki had a wistful look in her eyes as she smiled again.

"Yeah.. Must be nice to have the two best looking guys in your class like you,"

………………………………………………………………………………………………

Meg hadn't looked up once since Ryuu entered the room and closed the door behind him. He had absolutely no idea how to approach the matter. You'd think he'd come into the room with a plan fully formed in his head. However, he was as much a guy as Kyuu, Kinta and Kazuma were. And when it came to girls, well…

"Look, I'm sorry about the whole thing. If I hadn't opened my big mouth-"

"No," she said smiling at him "If it weren't for you guys, I probably would be still with that jerk,"

She laughed for a moment and stood up.

"Consider yourself forgiven,"

He smiled in relief. Honestly, he sometimes felt Meg was too nice for her own good.

"So.. everything's ok?" he ventured "If there is anything.."

"Actually, Yuki _did_ say something just now that got me thinking,"

"Oh?"

"I was just wondering how many girls that guy had managed to scam. I mean, how many girls had their hopes and hearts broken by some guy who was only interested in his street cred rather than their feelings,"

He had no answer to that. He could only wish that the guy would get what he deserved in the end.

"If its any consolation to you," he stepped forward and used his thumb to wipe a tear she had missed on her cheek "You've got.. at least 10 men ,teachers included, who care about your feelings every single day,"

Her smile widened as she looked up into his deep silver eyes. There was something different about them today. Something she had never noticed before.

"And currently, 8 of those men are in the next room, wondering if you're still mad at them,"

"Eight?"

"Kyuu's been listening at the door," he said while jerking his head backwards.

As if on cue, **(no pun intended)**, the door opened, revealing a sheepish Kyuu. Meg pulled away from Ryuu and proceeded to whack Kyuu playfully on the side of the head.

"That's for all the trouble you've caused mister."

She grinned at the black haired boy before turning back to Ryuu.

"I'm going to go apologize to everyone. We might still have a party here,"

Without waiting for an answer, she dashed out of the room, leaving the two boys alone.

"What were you playing at?" asked Kyuu evenly though his voice was a tone lower than usual.

"What do you mean?" said Ryuu looking right into Kyuu's eyes.

"You said you knew how I felt about her! You said you'd help expose her boyfriend so that I –"

"I said no such thing," he said, cutting the dark haired teenager off.

"As I recall, all I did was tell you the rumor and _suggest_ that we take precautionary measures,"

"Yeah," said Kyuu, raising his voice "You _suggested _things, just like.."

Kyuu stopped himself in mid-sentence. They both knew what had almost happened and knew at once that their argument had blown way out of proportion. Strangely enough, these arguments seemed even more frequent these days, especially when a certain pink haired girl was brought up between them.

The both of them were no doubt bright young men and could read the current predicament they both faced like an open book. However, Kyuu just had to know,

"What do you want Ryuu,?"

The cold emotionless look that Ryuu used to have in his eyes was back. And now, being aimed at Kyuu, it was even more frightening than before.

"You know exactly what I want."

And with that, he pushed past his friend and disappeared into the hallway.

………………………………………………………………………………………………

**Author's Note :** Eh, sorry if I hurt the feelings of any guys. Its just that I read this book by Rachel Gibson recently and you could say I was inspired. Oh, and the thing Kyuu didn't want to mention above was that Ryuu suggested things just like Pluto. Of course, Pluto is completely destroyed in my fic. Its just that everyone knows about Ryuu's connection to it and is ok with it. And you have to admit, even brothers fight sometimes.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3 : So It Begins

_**I owe a ton of apologies to everyone who waited for my story to be uploaded.. to whoever has been patient with me so far.. I express my deepest gratitude and sincerest apologies..**_

_**Standard disclaimers apply..**_

_**Forever In Between**_

_**Chapter 3 : Competition**_

It was newbie day.

Or rather, it was what Kazuma always called it. That day of each year where every member of the DDS family would get together in the main hall and Dan-sensei would introduce the new students. The bespectacled lad stifled a large yawn and tried to focus as Dan-sensei droned on about the importance of working together as a team.

To be frank, Kazuma was getting rather bored of the routinely proceedings of the ceremony. It was the same each year. Only after about an hour of preaching would Dan-sensei officially introduce the new kids.

It was not like anyone else was paying attention either. The whole of class Q sat in one row side by side. Kazuma had an isle seat. Beside him was Kinta who, without a doubt, had dozed off as soon as the speech began. Kazuma vaguely realized that those squinty eyes did have some use after all.

Shifting his glance away from the lamp post, Kazuma made out the bleary outline of Amakusa Ryu. The boy had crossed his legs and arms and appeared to be staring off into space. Without even looking, he knew that Meg and Kyu would be sitting beside him.

Kazuma heaved a sigh and looked ahead. Why in heaven's name did he chose today to leave his laptop battery uncharged? He could be playing computer games right now. Or even photomanipulating pictures of his classmates. Heh.. he might even check out some of the crazy websites out there. Lately, he had been obsessed about a certain pairing..

He was broken out of his stupor by a slight snigger from beside him. A female laugh. He strained his head to see Kyu whispering something in Meg's ear. After that, she clamped a hand over her mouth to stop her giggles from getting to loud. She then tugged on Ryu's shirt so that he could lean down as she whispered in his ear.

Kazuma's keen eyes did not miss the smile that appeared on Ryu's mouth or the narrowing of Kyu's eyebrows.

A sudden wave of curiosity engulfed the lad as he leaned back into his seat. Call it detective instinct, but he just had to find out what was going on between those three. Immediately, a thousand possible scenarios formed themselves in his mind and he smiled in glee as he pondered the possibilities.

………………………………………………………………………………………………

Well, they were not called Class Q for nothing. Immediately after that, Dan sensei informed the three students -minus Kazuma and Kinta- that they had another case to tackle. This time, they were to investigate a murder case that had happened in the Tokyo International University.

"Now, I'd like Kyu, Megumi, and Ryu to go in as new students,"

They were being briefed about the case in the headmaster's office.

"Unfortunately, Kinta will not be joining you this time as his father has requested him to undergo special police training,"

"Kazuma will remain here in the DDS premises and shall provide you with tech support. Even though he is already busy researching another case, we'll be sure that you are always in contact with each other,"

The three of them only nodded silently.

Katagiri sensei couldn't help but analyze each of her students from her corner of the room. Ever since the party was resumed, Kyu and Ryu had been acting strangely towards each other. She had an inkling of what this was about. Right now, Meg was standing in the middle of the two boys who were so obviously trying to avoid eye contact with each other.

"Her name was Makita Itsunagi. A third year medical student who was 24 years old,"

"The victim was found amongst the trash in the local dump. By the looks of it her body had been carried, unnoticed by the driver, all the way from a dumpster in the university to the city dump,"

Without warning, a horrific picture of a mangled corpse heaped under piles of rubbish came onto the screen behind Dan sensei.

Meg gasped and covered her mouth with her hand as she turned away momentarily.

Kyu couldn't blame her. The body of the girl was completely distorted. Her arms were twisted in the wrong direction and her head was snapped backwards. Almost as if she had been crushed.

"Do we have an estimated time of death?" said Ryu unflinchingly.

Kyu looked past Meg towards the blue haired boy.

_For kami's sake, I know the guy is trying to be professional and all but does he have to be so emotionless? He acts as if we see mutilated corpses on a daily basis._

Well, technically, they did. However, that was hardly the case.

Kyu looked back at the screen while Dan sensei shuffled through a sheaf of papers. The body was gone. Now, it showed the university's large campus grounds.

"The coroner's report says that her death was caused by a massive blow to her abdominal cavity. Pieces of her crushed ribs impaled her lungs, causing the victim to drown in her own body fluids,"

"The estimated time of death was somewhere around 8pm on Thursday. The body was found Friday morning,"

The three of them nodded.

"Well then, the three of you should go home and get a good night's rest. Your mission starts first thing in the morning." concluded Dan sensei.

"Hai!" the three of them chorused.

They were dismissed shortly after that. The three of them walked silently along the corridors with Meg trying to make conversation every few seconds. After several failed attempts, she came to a halt and glared at them crossly.

"_Honestly!_ What is the matter with the both of you?"

When neither of them replied, she opened her mouth as if she was going to yell when suddenly she gasped and widened her eyes as if she suddenly remembered something.

"What is it?" said both of them simultaneously. The two boys glanced at each other before turning back to Meg.

"No, its just that I forgot my cellphone back in the class. I'll just run and get it.."

She had already turned and started to run before Kyu could reply. He heaved a sigh and mumbled

"that girl.."

He turned to see Ryu leaning against the wall, seemingly interested in the pattern of his sneakers.

"Well..?"

"Well, what?" replied Ryu

"Aren't you coming after her with me? If you haven't already noticed, Meg has just run off alone in a near deserted building at 11pm!"

"If _you_ haven't noticed, the corridors are brightly lit. Dan sensei is still around and I'm damn sure Meg can defend herself if she needed to,"

And he knew because he had been teaching her self defense for the past two years.

"She's our friend!"

"She's fine!" said Ryu exasperatedly. "Do you think that you're going to shield her eyes every time we see a rotting corpse? Do you really think she's gonna get scared in the face of death like she used to and come crying into your arms?"

The silence that followed hung above them like an ominous cloud.

"You have no idea.." began Kyu softly "what it was like in that trick room three years ago. With Meg bitten and the both of us having no idea if anyone could come help us,"

He looked into the eyes of his best friend and said

"You have no idea how scary it is. Seeing your best friend suffer and not being able to do anything but calm them down when you yourself are on the verge of loosing it,"

Ryu looked away.

"She doesn't need to be babied. I've said it once and I'll say it again. She has her gift for a reason. She's a lot stronger than she was three years ago. And I for one will not stand in her way when she has to use it,"

Meg gulped as she heard what her two friends were saying. She had heard raised voices when she was walking back from retrieving her cellphone and had sneaked back to investigate. She had only heard Kyu's story and Ryu's proclamation. But that was enough for her to realize. They both cared for her. More than what they let her know. And now, she felt guilty for even pondering the possibility of liking one more than the other.

She stepped out from her hiding place and at once the two boys looked at her. She smiled and pretended she didn't hear a thing.

"Ja, Lets go!" she said cheerfully.

The boys were definitely more chatty now. And she felt all unease evaporate instantly. Things will work out. Eventually.

……………………………………………………………………………………………...

The following morning, they met up at the train station and made their way towards the university. Meg noted the fact that both of her friends seemed to have cheered up overnight. Their behavior at the party still confused her. But then she waved it of thinking that they had argued about something.

They were greeted by the student counselor at the school gates. She seemed relieved that DDS had finally arrived. Her name was Rinko Gerrard and she looked like she was in her late 20's. She was a tall and thin woman with her hair a dark shade of lavender. As Meg shook both of the woman's hands, Kyu nudged Ryu.

"They could pass off as sisters,"

Ryu sniggered slightly and whispered back.

"You think Kinta would like this one too?"

Their whispers were cut off by the appearance of another member of faculty. This time, it was a dark haired man in a white polo shirt and black slacks. He wore a cheeky smile on his face and much like Nanami sensei, practically oozed a playful aura. However, his features were marred by a scar that covered his left eye. And if Ryu was not mistaken, he wore a towel on his forehead like a bandana.

"Hello there! I'm Seiichiro Sano. I teach geography here," as he shook everyone's hands eagerly.

He winked at Meg.

"But you can call me Sano if you let me take you for a movie tonight,"

_Thwack!_

Rinko had just hit the dark haired man on the head. A vein was pulsing at her temple. Yup, they were definitely long lost sisters.

"You'll have to excuse him. He's as playful as a seven year old kid. He tends to act out of line,"

"Aww.. don't be such a spoilsport _Rinrin_,"

Kyu burst out laughing at that comment while Meg blushed furiously.

They moved away from the gates and started walking towards the dorms. Rinko and Sano walked abreast with Meg and Kyu while Ryu brought up the rear. Soon, the air was filled with Sano's and Kyu's boisterous laughter.

_They really do make quite a pair_. Thought Ryu to himself.

Sano pointed out several of the major buildings on the way. As they passed the Art building, Ryu saw the man inconspicuously slip his hand around Rinko's waist. This earned him another _thwack_ on the head but the lavender haired woman made no move to leave the man's side.

Ryu suddenly realized that the two of them kinda looked like future versions of Kyu and Meg. A grim sensation suddenly filled his insides and he shook his head vigorously in attempt to rid himself of the feeling.

They reached the dorms without further incident. It was two days before the summer holidays which meant that there were very few students still hanging around the school. The boys and girls dormitories were in separate buildings. They immediately decided to check out the crime scene before doing anything else.

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_that's it for now.. I'll try to update as soon as I can.. Promise.._


End file.
